It’s a good time for Sydney waterfront real estate.

The international wave of takeovers and private equity deals is set to drive the top end of the real estate market ever higher as those at or even vaguely near the top of the finance industry pay themselves unprecedented billions.

For example, London’s Centre for Economics and Business Research reckons some 4,200 City types will receive bonus payments of one million quid or more this year.

That’s the thick end of A$2.5 million each. And that’s just the bonus cheque largely thanks to the M&A fever that is pushing stock markets into record territory.

Bonus payments to London’s financial elite should be up 18% this year to a total of 8.8 million pounds – A$21.7 billion. As the BBC reports, that’s driving up London housing with prices up 8.5% over the past year. And still rising.

It’s the same story on a smaller scale in Australia’s financial capital. Whatever pain the workers in NSW might be suffering, the financial engineers, deal-makers, consultants and advisors are creaming plenty that partly goes into the top end of the housing market.

And behind it all is the tide of easy money sloshing around financial markets, driving prices and deals the way it inevitably does until the music, at some stage, stops.